Teacher Professional Role Identity Development and School Reform: A Reciprocal Relationship

• In Event: Sheraton Roundtable Session 2
  In Roundtable Session: Teacher Leader Identity Development: Cross-National Perspectives

Abstract

Teachers play a major role in the success of educational reform, and reforms impact teachers in different ways. This paper explores the reciprocal relationship between teachers’ role identity development and the development of a school reform, meaning, how the reform affords or constrains teacher role identity development, and how teacher role identity development enhances or hinders reform enactment through two theoretical lenses: teacher leadership and teacher identity. We followed six teachers in one reform-affiliated school over a three year period, and examine (a) their professional role identity development and (b) their involvement in reform enactment. This paper expands our understanding of the development of educational reforms aimed at fostering teacher leadership, illuminating the critical role teacher identity plays.

Authors

• Tali Aderet-German, Ben Gurion University of the Negev

• Aliza Segal, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

• Dana Vedder-Weiss, Ben Gurion University of the Negev

• Rotem Trachtenberg, Ben Gurion University of the Negev